What Are You Looking For?

A historical story told through Dorothy’s account, it pairs memories of the Titanic voyage with the aftermath of survival and a secret about that night.

A fantasy adventure about a solitary cat finding companionship and confronting an obscured past, set alongside a clan's struggle to survive drought. Belonging and adversity are central.

This is a fantasy road-trip sequel about life after saving the world: Simon, Baz and Penny face new danger while struggling with identity, relationships and the aftermath of earlier events.

A fast-moving finale combines mythological adventure with questions of identity and belonging. Its emotional centre lies in characters confronting painful memories and deciding what they owe to friends, communities and the wider world.

This is a serious family drama about a teenager carrying responsibility for a struggling parent. Its strongest material lies in showing how trauma affects relationships, choices and the possibility of accepting support.

This is a serious, trauma-focused novel in which two sisters face the effects of abuse, family disruption and foster care. It also follows attempts to find support, speak openly and begin recovering.

A dark, intense revenge fantasy about a teenager confronting sexual violence, seeking to save someone important to her and using magic that comes at a stated price. Expect horror, suspense and graphic imagery.

This is a richly imagined sequel where magical danger carries emotional consequences. Alongside romance and wonder, the story examines whether compassion, memory and mercy can interrupt cycles of violence and inherited fear.

A thoughtful story about how children’s curiosity can become humane attention. Its emotional centre is Carl’s dance, which makes hidden wartime suffering visible while preserving his dignity and complexity.

A poetic, emotionally serious story about two traumatised teenagers seeking connection and truth. Its unusual voices and recurring poems offer rich interpretation, while difficult experiences and contested ideas about healing require thoughtful engagement.

This is an unusual, structurally adventurous story about a refugee rebuilding his life while several other narratives unfold around him. It combines science fiction, historical material, dark humour and emotionally serious questions about survival and disclosure.

This is a historical coming-of-age story about how proximity to power can distort a child’s judgement, while friendship, conscience and resistance remain possible responses to injustice.

Choose this for a reader drawn to Greek mythology, modern fantasy and high-stakes competition, provided graphic violence and mature themes are not likely to overwhelm them.

This is literary fantasy rather than a gentle fairy tale: a refuge formed after abuse becomes a setting for examining protection, secrecy and the daughters’ developing agency. Expect symbolic transformation, vivid bodily imagery and abrupt movement between beauty, humour and brutality.

This is a grief-centred coming-of-age story told through letters, linking private mourning with school, friendship, family change and first love. Its reflective structure keeps Laurel’s inner life at the centre.

This is a family-centred wartime novel about waiting, responsibility and the difficult return from military service. Its emotional focus is Marcus’s effort to cope at home before his father’s experiences reshape the family’s life.

A tense faerie-court fantasy about Oak, imprisoned and bound by magic, and Wren, a vengeful queen. Their choices intertwine love, loyalty, family power and a looming battle, amid betrayal and dangerous political manoeuvring.

A magical friendship story combines snowy adventures with questions about fear, loneliness, community and letting go. Tasha's bond with Alyana is central, while winter's persistence may affect other people around them.

This is an emotionally tense story about two former friends facing grief and guilt after a tragedy. Its alternating viewpoints offer different perspectives on damaged trust, private struggles and the possibility of moving forward.

This is an emotionally intense, socially engaged story of young people facing bereavement, family instability, discrimination and addiction. Its perspective shifts and layered histories invite sustained attention, while compassion, accountability, faith and hope remain important strands.

This is a war-and-refugee coming-of-age novel: Kateryno leaves Kharkiv with her mother and brother, settles with a British host family, and navigates separation, new relationships and the emotional aftermath of invasion.

This is a character-led environmental mystery about two young people who feel different or guarded. It combines wildlife protection, a beach discovery, family secrets and friendship, while giving Ivy’s difficult earlier experiences meaningful emotional weight.

Its emotional centre is the search for a new meaning of home.

A dark, fast-moving revenge thriller that reworks Macbeth through a teen girl’s response to sexual violence. Its central appeal is suspense and moral provocation; its intensity comes from trauma, murder and a sustained focus on retaliation.

This is a bleak, emotionally charged dystopian novel: survival, loyalty and resistance unfold amid child combatants, grief and tightly controlled public narratives. Its literary symbolism and political ideas sit alongside substantial graphic violence.

This is a fast-moving mystery-romance centred on recovery, guilt and uncertain trust. Its atmosphere combines a summer setting with disturbing discoveries, while journal flashbacks gradually disclose the protagonist’s past.

Expect a fast-moving, twisty mystery shaped by creepy folklore, family conflict and uncertainty about what Ava can trust. Its strongest features are atmosphere, suspense and clues that invite readers to solve the case alongside her.

A tense story about girls seeking safety and belonging under Sol’s control. As new relationships and demands unsettle the cabin, the book follows questions of loyalty, selfhood, survival and whether protection can become coercion.

A sombre, imaginative story about sisters, a sleeping princess and a dreamworld shaped by inner struggles. Expect more emotional and psychological exploration than fast-moving adventure, with fairy-tale wonder alongside painful material.

This is a war novel centred on a young woman’s divided loyalties: caring for the wounded, protecting family and considering escape. It offers an emotionally intense perspective on civilian danger, responsibility and hope.

Expect a character-focused sequel combining queer Arthurian fantasy, a travelling quest and emotional aftermath. The central concerns are panic, trauma, grief, strained romances and the effort required to reconnect after conflict.

A grieving teenager travels through Zimbabwe with her family and an elusive companion only she can see. The story combines family conflict, cultural discovery and emotional reflection, with a deliberately mysterious ending that may reward close attention.

This is a horror mystery about survivors confronting a copycat killer who turns local legends and their past trauma into staged crimes. It offers suspense, friendship, queer romance and questions about who controls a traumatic story.

This is an atmospheric fantasy centred on Effy’s struggle to trust her own perceptions after harassment and earlier trauma. Its gothic tension sits alongside romance, questions about consent and a gradual movement towards self-worth.

This is an emotionally heavy story about loss and its aftermath, combining a dead girl’s perspective with the family’s attempts to cope. Its strongest appeal may be its focus on love, hope and change after trauma.

This is a war novel that places personal memories, family bonds and village life alongside the First World War. Its account of military justice gives the story a strong moral and emotional focus.

This is an immersive mystery built around clues, competing players and a virtual-reality setting. Its appeal lies in escalating secrets and atmosphere, while the substantial dialogue may make the opening feel slower.

This is character-led contemporary fiction centred on two care-experienced young men. It explores how they manage trauma, vulnerability and change without necessarily resolving their past, while keeping a strong sense of place and emotional warmth.

A tense boarding-school mystery about disappearance, grief and alliance-building. Its international, multi-ethnic and multi-religious cast includes positively portrayed queer characters, while Gothic atmosphere and several intertwined storylines create a more demanding emotional and structural experience.

This is a dark, plot-driven psychological thriller about emotional numbness, memory and simulated traumatic experiences. Its central mystery follows Eli’s growing suspicion that Traumaland conceals something more dangerous.

This is a demanding, historically grounded family story that combines severe hardship with compassion, solidarity and social criticism. Its emotional force comes from people trying to preserve dignity and connection while facing displacement, hunger and injustice.

Speak is a serious fictional account of a teenager living with the aftermath of rape, social isolation and silence. It presents art, courage and finding a voice as important parts of Melinda’s movement towards recovery.

Choose this for a reader who enjoys fantasy heists, ensemble casts and morally complicated characters, and who can engage with sustained darkness. Its imaginative world supports questions about loyalty, consequence and how people form connection after trauma.

Expect a tense American road story combining mystery and crime with themes of inner strength, self-confidence and personal growth. Jessie and Brooke’s changing relationship is central, with music and cassette tapes forming a recurring creative feature of their journey.

A tense wartime adventure about a young Muslim protagonist whose family and community face Nazi occupation. Safiyyah undertakes dangerous errands, while the mosque becomes a place of sanctuary for persecuted Jewish people.